Those may seem like mere words in the short term, but there is an implicit threat that comes along with those labels. Following such a branding, people have been subject to physical violence, career destruction, vandalism of their property, social ostracism, and even worse. It is the equivalent of being called a heretic during the Spanish Inquisition. There is an extreme chilling effect on discourse as a result of this.

Wait, so people are now being imprisoned and tortured to death after being called racist, sexist, or Islamophobic (in countries that purport to uphold free speech)?

Or, perhaps, is the Spanish inquisition comparison a bit hyperbolic?